Who will see your sign – and does it matter?

Every business needs a sign! Ask every business owner, or sign manufacturer, and they will ALL tell you that EVERY business needs a sign, because, as the old – make that ancient – maybe even biblical(?) saying goes – “A Business Without A Sign Is A Sign of No Business”.

But, is this saying still true today in the modern work online, work from home, during and post covid world?

Possibly, in this modern world, the question should not be Who will see my sign, but rather WHAT is the modern definition of a sign?

Traditionally ALL signs were physical visual communications that one could touch, put up and take down. Today, while this is still a LARGE part of signage, it is not necessarily ALL there is to signage, as, while we still believe that signs are essential for every business – of course we are biased, we survive off selling SIGNS – the reality is a ‘traditional’ sign may not be valid for a business which is wholly online. But because a traditional sign is not relevant, does not mean NO sign is relevant (We will get back to this later).

WHO see’s the sign will depend a lot on the placement of the sign, the location of the sign, the type of sign, what – if anything – makes the sign STAND OUT and the state of mind of the potential viewer. That is a LOT of factors, many of which the sign owner has ZERO control over.

It is for this reason that the owner of the sign, together with the sign manufacturer, should look at ALL the factors THEY CAN CONTROL.

Before we look at factors we can control, lets look at the one factor we can never have control over – the state of mind of the potential viewer!

Theory is a wonderful thing., It sometimes even accurately predicts some of the things – incidents, events – that happen IN REAL LIFE. I mention this because there is an interesting – I believe excellent – theory by one Jay Abraham – which states that the viewer will most likely NEVER see your sign, article or whatever UNTIL THEY NEED YOUR PRODUCT.

If Mr Abraham is correct, then it is definitely not worth worrying about those people you cannot attract, as they are simply not interested in what you have to offer. And, once again, if Mr Abraham is correct, then best you focus you attention and energy on the people who DO want what you have to offer.

So how do you catch the attention of those people that MAY want what you have to offer? How do you get potential prospects to SEE your sign?

The viewer will most likely only SEE your sign when it is in their line of sight. It should be obvious that if your sign is out of sight, chances are it will not get seen.

Sadly, because your sign IS in line of sight does not necessarily mean it will be SEEN. The chances are better that it will be seen, but there is no guarantee that it will be seen. Sadly, there is never a guarantee.

So if your sign is in line of sight, and the viewer has an interest in what you have to offer, what would make the viewer SEE your sign?

For starters, the greater the contrast ON the sign – for example Black text on a YELLOW backing is more likely to be seen than a BLACK background with DARK GRAY text. The same applies to the surrounding where the sign is located. If you are the only sign for miles, chances are very high your sign will be seen. On the other hand, if you are the only non-illuminated sign among the flashing neon signs on Fremont Street in Vegas, it is almost as if you should not waste your money and time to place a sign as the flashing neon will totally overshadow your non-illuminated sign. There are many additional factors that we will look at in another blog.

For the sign to be SEEN, it also needs to stand out in whatever way possible. The greater the STAND OUT factor of your sign, the more likely it is to be seen, and it’s message – and your brand – remembered. There is however a point where the message can get lost if the sign is too ‘outstanding’.

If you want signs that are an investment – in that they get SEEN, contact SignForce. Our years of experience in Marketing and Signage mean that we are qualified and will do our best to make sure your signs get SEEN.

Contact SignForce now on +27 (0)11 440 7525 or info@signforce.co.za or find out more about SignForce at http://www.signforce.co.za